As the world becomes increasingly aware of the need for sustainable housing, geodesic domes are poised to play a pivotal role in the future of both the housing and tourism industries, offering a practical solution that balances affordability and comfort with sustainability. Freyja Skye, founder and owner of Phoenix Domes, explains how the business has evolved and continues to lead the way in providing eco-friendly, innovative, and beautiful accommodations that promise not only a place to stay but a step toward a more sustainable future.
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The story behind Phoenix Domes begins with Freyja Skye going in multiple entrepreneurial directions. It was not until an idea that was far from conventional construction brought life to her belief that the spaces we inhabit should be as imaginative as the lives we live. It is this belief, fueled by Freyja’s passion for craftsmanship and creativity, that has evolved into a successful business based on adaptability.
Freyja, who grew up in Germany and came to Canada in her twenties, dreamed of being an architect in her teenage years, but after completing an internship, she decided that career path wasn’t for her. Soon after, Freyja launched a clothing line focused on dance wear, yoga wear, and natural fiber clothing. The business allowed her to follow her heart as a dancer and circus performer while being her main livelihood for many years and a huge learning opportunity in entrepreneurship.
After sixteen years, the clothing line had fallen and wasn’t doing well. Freyja decided to put her creativity and past love for architecture to work, creating her first dome. “I built my first dome from scratch and at first, used it as a circus studio, teaching classes. I lived in it for a summer while I rented my house out to pay for the dome. I was always interested in domes; the geometry fascinates me,” says Freyja. She used a big table vice a friend had purchased at a yard sale to create that first dome – ten years later, and that dome is still standing.
After working with a factory to create a couple more domes, Freyja had planned to rent them as vacation rentals, but unfortunately, the area she was living in was cutting back on the opening of new Airbnb rentals. While this disrupted her plans, she built one of the domes on her property, posted some pictures on Facebook, and suddenly received a lot of comments and interest. So she decided to build a simple website to showcase and sell the domes! While it was slow to start, the word got out and demand increased. Unlike many businesses that got hit hard during COVID, Phoenix Domes was able to succeed and grow. “We sold a lot of the restaurant patio domes, the smaller all-clear ones that you put over a table outside. With the social distancing rules, we sold hundreds of those offering a social distancing solution for restaurants so they could stay open during COVID”, states Freyja.
Freyja officially started and incorporated Phoenix Domes in January of 2020. Since then, she has had her share of challenges, with the biggest ones being supply chain issues, quality control, and warehousing logistics. “At first, I had things shipped to my farm on Salt Spring Island, which involved ferries. I had them under a pop-up tent in the driveway, trying to sort things and have carriers to pick them up again. Then, traveling to Vancouver, sorting materials in the shipping yards, before getting them to the warehouse, which almost quit on us because the materials were packaged so poorly that it was just too difficult for them to store and ship. Quality control was another issue. It took a lot of back and forth with our manufacturing partners to ensure that customers were happy with the dome packages they were receiving. It is not good for business when customers are unhappy about something they’re spending a lot of money on.”
When asked about the construction of the domes, Freyja explains that the geometry of the domes is the reason it has so much more strength than most other structures – triangles don’t fail. Unlike squares, for example, which can twist and deform without support, triangles are stable and distribute force evenly across their structure. Buckminster Fuller won an award in the 1970s for using this efficiency—using minimal material to achieve maximum strength—and helped popularize the geodesic domes. The structures can be assembled quickly, often by a small group of people, yet can withstand extreme weather. While traditional glamping domes rely on flexible fabric covers and temporary framing, Phoenix Domes builds upon this legacy with thoughtful upgrades that transform the dome from a tent-like shelter into a resilient, semi-permanent structure designed to last. “We have had our domes engineered for the most extreme wind and snow loads that you would encounter in Canada, using heavier frame sizes to make them incredibly strong. I wouldn’t say they’re stronger than a conventional house, but they have the same strength with way fewer materials. One of our eight-hundred-square-foot dome structures. Can fit into a can fit a four-by-six-foot crate, you could never do that with lumber and conventional materials”, explains Freyja.
When asked if the domes expire, Freyja explains that there is no “expiry date” as such, but rather it’s the clear PVC that you must replace within three or four years. The other part of the cover, she says, she hasn’t seen one wear out in ten years and believes that it would depend more on the exposure – it’ll last longer in Canada than it would in Arizona, for example. The business has recently developed upgrades for the domes, such as a metal roof and glass windows, that will give you a more permanent structure that will last for generations.
Phoenix Domes doesn’t believe in a one-dome-fits-all mentality. They offer three different types in many different sizes – a full glass dome, a soft cover dome, and a hybrid, which is a mix of soft cover and partially glass, which can be insulated further. They also offer the option to customize your own dome, bringing your vision and creativity to life. “Our biggest customer base is those who offer or are looking to get into short-term accommodations,” says Freyja. The business has also sold many domes for people to live in; most aren’t permitted, but people choose to tuck them away in the woods and live in them during this housing crisis. “We’ve done some larger ones for yoga studios or more common spaces – our ten-meter (thirty-three-foot) dome is the largest standard size we carry. We’ve done larger domes for gathering spaces, plus built a custom sixty-foot greenhouse that was all covered with hard panel polycarbonate to be able to grow food year-round in Northern BC.”
With Phoenix Domes, you will always receive exceptional customer service. Freyja explains that the business loves to nurture its customers and offers plenty of information on their domes, so no questions go unanswered, and there are no surprises after the purchase is made. One thing that sets them apart from the rest is their willingness to work with you to explore new ideas, and they will continue to support you throughout your journey. The business ensures its customers are offered replacement parts and upgrade options.
If you’re looking to purchase a dome from Phoenix domes, a customer would start by viewing their website and filling out a quote request. In response, Freyja and her team will send back the quote with an idea of the end cost and all the information regarding things to consider when purchasing a dome, such as platform, installation options, heating, and upgrade options. If customers are looking to build a more customized dome, a personal phone call will be booked with Freyja to help make their visions come to life with her knowledge and expertise. Freyja explains, “The benefit of the dome upgrades we’ve developed is that people can also start very simply if they don’t have a huge budget right away and then upgrade their domes over time, by adding in the glass windows and other accessories.” As per a timeline to receive your dome, the business has two warehouses in Toronto and Vancouver, so depending on your location and if the requested dome is in stock, you can have your dome in as little as a week. Custom orders, however, can take up to three months but are worth the short wait.
As for competition, there are only a small number of comparable companies, one being Pacific Domes, which are in the US and American-made; they have been around for a very long time. They are very well respected by Freyja as the quality of their domes is very similar, but their pricing is relatively higher.
If you’re looking to get into the hospitality industry, domes could be your best option, financially. A very nice dome starts around $10,000, plus the cost of a platform, setup, and interior finishing. This means that a successful business can often pay that off in a year and buy more the following year and keep growing. It could potentially be a quick return on your investment when done properly.
In 2026, Phoenix Dome plans to continue promoting their residential domes and glass domes, along with their many upgrades and dome accessories.
In many ways, Phoenix Domes mirrors Freyja’s own journey—resilient, unconventional, and quietly revolutionary. What began as a personal experiment born out of curiosity and necessity has grown into a business that reimagines how we build, live, and gather. At a time when housing feels increasingly inaccessible and conventional solutions fall short, Phoenix Domes offers something rare: structures that are efficient yet beautiful, practical yet imaginative. More than domes, they are proof that when creativity, craftsmanship, and courage intersect, it’s possible to build spaces and lives that rise from challenge stronger than before.
by Krista Legge-Wakeley